


If we ever tango again

by Rigo



Category: 19天 - Old先 | 19 Days - Old Xian
Genre: College, Fluff, Fun, Humor, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Slow Burn, angst-free zone (more or less)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-21
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2020-10-25 13:20:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20724860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rigo/pseuds/Rigo
Summary: It's been two years since He Tian and Jian Yi disappeared and now that they're back they think Guan Shan and Zheng Xi will just welcome them with open arms and an open heart? No way!However, when they start to mess with their old boyfriends… well, things do get messy.(Yes, this will turn into full-blown polyamory and every combination between the characters will have their little moments in the spotlight. And by that I don't just mean they do it with each other in rotation! In this house we support non-sexual relationship time and funny dialogues. So be warned.)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm taking some liberties here. Let's just say, this is more or less an AU in that everything is actually like canon except for the things that don't suit me or the writing of this story. Don't worry, it won't be confusing. We'll start with the fact that they're all 18 here and He Tian and Jian Yi both disappeared around two years ago. That's all you need to know. Now go and have fun :)

Mo Guan Shan stared at the antique clock in the corner of the store and groaned in frustration.

It was not the kind of clock he had ever imagined staring at to find out how much time was left until he could leave work. Just like every other surface inside, it was framed by plants and flowers. The clock had been hand-painted by Guan Shan’s mother, displaying a pattern of bright red and yellow blossoms. Balanced on top of it were three pots, barely fitting in the small space. Ivy cascaded down the sides of the clock and cloaked it in an evergreen hull.

It all looked very beautiful, sure. But the ivy had grown into the clock hands again and refused him enlightenment regarding the time. He was getting hungry.

The sound of a bell alerted him to a customer and he quickly tied on the apron he had loosened a few minutes before to soothe his aching belly.

“Welcome to Honeypot, what are you looking for… today…”

He trailed off, the forced chipper tone still sounding awkward in his head, but that had nothing to do with why his mouth became too dry to speak and his stomach suddenly hurt twice as much as before.

There, in the doorway, just as prominently framed by cascading ivy as the clock in the corner, stood a man he had never thought to see again in his life. A man that had haunted his dreams for countless months. A man who had no business being a man at all, since Guan Shan only remembered him as a boy.

For a moment, everything got dark. Guan Shan had to lean on the counter to keep himself from falling.

It was He Tian.

_He Tian_ was standing in the door of the Mo family’s flower shop, and he had the gall to grin from ear to ear, hands casually hidden in the pockets of a posh looking blazer.

“I’m looking for a very special flower, actually,” He Tian said. The tone of his voice, the cockiness, the deep rumble, the sharp intonations – it was all so familiar, yet Guan Shan had never been able to properly recall it in his head. Now it felt like a punch in the gut.

“You!” was all Guan Shan was able to spit out. His head felt hot, his eyes watery. He was trembling. He Tian had reduced him back to a teenager in a mere second. What should he say? What should anyone say when one’s long lost boyfriend suddenly showed up and acted like he had just gone out for cigarettes? Guan Shan clenched his fists.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he bit out.

He Tian strolled towards him, carefully circling the pots and vases on the floor. His face looked just as haughty and unbothered by other people’s feelings as Guan Shan remembered it. That face was forever etched into his memory.

“Wow, little Mo. I never would have pictured you standing behind the counter of a flower shop with a colorful little apron. I was almost afraid you had changed. But now I see that you’re still the same easily irritable punk as when I left. Phew.”

A hot surge of anger that Guan Shan had worked very hard to suppress came bubbling up from his intestines. The sort where everything went red, as if the whole world had started to bleed. He blanked out for a second - next thing he knew, Guan Shan stood on the counter and threw himself at He Tian like a show wrestler.

He Tian easily caught him – the blazer was hiding a new set of muscles that Guan Shan – between cooking classes and his part time job – hadn’t had the time to build.

“I missed you, too,” He Tian smirked, completely ignoring how Guan Shan tried to struggle out of the embrace. If it had been hard to overpower He Tian two years ago, it was now completely impossible. Thankfully, He Tian soon let him go, holding him at an arm’s length to give him a good look-over.

“The apron suits you,” he said.

“I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!”

Guan Shan had finally lost the rest of his composure and was now screaming uncontrollably.

“You dare waltz back into my life after two fucking years? After you left without even saying fucking goodbye? I don’t even remember you that well. You think I cried a single fucking tear after you, you dirty bastard?”

“You’re literally crying tears right now,” said He Tian.

“My eyes are getting teary from the stink of you!” Guan Shan shouted. “You’re standing way too close. All the flowers are gonna wilt from the smell!”

He Tian’s answer was to simply pull him back into another embrace. It was like a chokehold. Guan Shan did his best not to ease into it, although it was harder now that he had started to think about He Tian’s smell. The truth was, He Tian smelled very good. Like laundry detergent and hair products and safety.

“I’m sorry, little Mo.”

Guan Shan felt the words rumble through He Tian’s body, felt his arms tighten around him even more, as if he never meant to let go again. Well, it was too late. Much too late.

“I missed you. I missed you a lot.”

Damn it. Guan Shan could already feel how that tricky voice was starting to get to him. He was getting weaker. The voice was tenderizing him like the Viennese Schnitzel he had prepared in the restaurant yesterday. Thinking of the restaurant and its eccentric owner made Guan Shan stiffen again.

“Didn’t you miss me at all?”

A deep breath escaped Guan Shan when he opened his mouth and choked, “Of course I did, you fucking asshole.”

He Tian’s body shook in a silent chuckle, but he still hadn’t won. Guan Shan remained stiff. He didn’t melt into the embrace until He Tian loosened it to look into his eyes.

“I’m back. For good. I promise.”

What was that asshole thinking? That he could simply show up one day, looking fit and well dressed and having grown even taller, spewing pathetic lines about how he had missed Guan Shan oh so terribly, and Guan Shan would fall for those same empty promises?

He Tian had been the first person Guan Shan had ever opened up to. His relentlessness, his physicalness, the way he never held back with anything – all of it paired with open longing, protectiveness and understanding – it had been the exact recipe to break through the hull of aggressive teenage Guan Shan, who thought he had no choice but to be the way he was, until He Tian came along and completely turned his life around.

He Tian had learned to stop trying to control Guan Shan and in turn taught him to accept help. He Tian had always made it clear that he was not a hero saving his distressed damsel, that he was simply lucky to have the money and connections to help Guan Shan and was now going to share that luck with him.

However, their frail little relationship had only lasted a week. Seven short days after Guan Shan had finally admitted to himself that he may have fallen for He Tian, five days after he told him to his face, one day after they kissed for the first time. Guan Shan had stood in front of He Tian’s building with his trusty yellow umbrella and waited and waited. But that had been it. He Tian had fallen off the face of the Earth. His phone number was no longer in use. The teacher said he’d been transferred. Guan Shan remembered sitting on the mats outside of the school, watching through a game of basketball with empty eyes, until he was startled by something he first thought to be his own reflection.

Instead, it had been Zhan Zheng Xi sitting on the other side of the field, wearing the exact same look.

Later that day he learned that Jian Yi had disappeared too.

But now, now He Tian was standing before him. The two years suited him well, he had grown into his height and his eyes almost looked a little wiser. Guan Shan noticed a little scar above the eyebrow – barely visible, had He Tian not been mere inches from his face. It was almost too late when Guan Shan realized that He Tian was leaning in for a kiss.

“Hold on a second!” Guan Shan screeched. His hand had managed to squeeze between their lips just in time and He Tian was looking at him with dark eyes, half of his face covered by Guan Shan’s hand. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“I had some duties to fulfill. Now I came back to continue where we left off.”

Guan Shan didn’t know what to say to that. Was He Tian joking? He _had_ to be joking, right?

“You’re serious…” he realized after a few seconds of blankly staring at He Tian’s face.  
“You’re FUCKING SERIOUS!”

Great, now he was shouting again. Good thing there had been no customer for a while.

“I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU! YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE! Do you think I put my life on hold after you vanished, huh? That after TWO YEARS you can just turn up again and here I would be, ready to throw myself into your arms LIKE A FUCKING BIMBO?”

A well-known darkness now clouded He Tian’s eyes, but where teenage Guan Shan might have pissed himself a little at that look, current Guan Shan was just angry enough to push He Tian away into a ficus benjamini.

He Tian managed to stay on his feet and so did the tree.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, surprisingly calm. “You need some time? That’s fine, I can win you over again. It was a lot of fun last time.”

“I have a boyfriend!” Guan Shan shouted – and finally, his words seemed to have some effect. He Tian opened his mouth, didn’t find any words, and closed it again.

“That’s right,” Guan Shan huffed. “Did you seriously think I would grieve for two years before I moved on?”

“No,” said He Tian. He was standing tall again, now looming over Guan Shan with a sort of coldness that sent shivers down his spine. “I guess not. I just didn’t expect…”

“What, that anyone would want me?”

He Tian said nothing. His brows were furrowed, as if he were confused by something. Guan Shan had a hunch what that might be. Maybe Guan Shan hadn’t seen He Tian for two years, but he was sure that He Tian was very well informed about his life.

About six months into his disappearance Guan Shan’s mother had mysteriously come into a lot of money. Some distant relative had died and she was the only remaining heir – that had been the official explanation. But however deep Guan Shan dug, he couldn’t find any mention of that person in their family tree. In any case, his mother had not looked the gift horse in the mouth, had paid off their debt, paid for her husband’s bail and fulfilled her dream of opening her own flower shop. Just as mysterious was the sudden lack of gang members trying to cause trouble in the Mo family’s life.

All in all, they had become a normal and happy family.

Of course, Guan Shan wasn’t stupid. Things like these didn’t just happen. They were made to happen by powerful people. People, who may show up one day and ask you to return the favor. He had always known that the trouble was never really gone. It was steadily bubbling on the back burner and as soon as you forgot about it, it would turn to total shit.

So He Tian had kept track of him for the past two years. That explained why it would seem logical to him that they could still be together – he had never actually been gone. But Guan Shan’s reality was a different one and He Tian had to realize that.

“Are you happy?” He Tian asked, grim.

“Happier than ever.”

He Tian nodded slowly. “Well, I’ll be honest with you. I imagined a very different outcome for this meeting. Let’s just say, I’m not amused.”

How he managed to say that without sounding completely ridiculous was beyond Guan Shan.

“But,” He Tian said, “I’m here because I’m done with… that world. And I’m trying to become a person who doesn’t have to rely on violence to get what he wants. I’d like to be friends with you again, if you think you can do that.”

Now his expression lost some of the coldness – he even winked at Guan Shan.

“I’ll say before we start that it won’t be easy to resist this.”

“Thanks, I’ll manage,” Guan Shan tried to snap, but it sounded more like a croak.

He’d have to work on his tells before he could pull off a balanced friendship with He Tian.

“Good.” He Tian suddenly turned and walked towards the exit, which generated a short- lived panic attack in Guan Shan’s stomach. What if he just walked out of here and vanished again? They hadn’t even exchanged numbers. Guan Shan would be completely on the mercy of He Tian coming back to him. He’d drive himself crazy trying to figure out if it had all been real or a fever dream.

Thankfully, before Guan Shan could yell a desperate “Wait!” He Tian turned around with a lopsided grin.

“I moved back into my uncle’s old apartment. It would be nice if you could visit this evening. No need to bring housewarming gifts – but you could bring your boyfriend. I’m very curious to meet him. And don’t worry, I won’t secretly send any hitmen after him.”

“I’m definitely worried now!” Guan Shan said – nope, still croaked – and bit his lips.

“Anyway. I’m sure Jian Yi will be happy to see you again, too.”

With those words, He Tian walked out of the shop, leaving Guan Shan with an even bigger hole in his stomach than when he had walked in.

“Jian Yi… is back?” Guan Shan whispered to himself.

He turned and ran around the counter, almost slipped on a wet patch on the floor, where he had over-watered one of the flowers, and slid into the little back room hidden behind a curtain of plants. His phone was lying on a shelf lined with succulents. Glancing at the display, he noticed that the store should have been closed for half an hour already – no wonder no one had come in. But there were more important things to do than get angry about that right now.

He didn’t have to go through his contacts – the number he wanted to call was his most called during the past two years and had earned the only spot on his short dial list.

“Pick up pick up pick up!”

“Hey,” said Zheng Xi, sounding a lot less monotonous than usual. “Not the perfect time, actually.”

“He Tian and Jian Yi-“ Guan Shan started to ramble but stopped in his tracks when he realized that there could only be one reason for the weird quality to Zheng Xi’s voice. Since they shared the same fate and had already been something like friends, they had grown very close over the past two years. Their shared activities had included elaborate investigations into their friends’ sudden disappearance, coming up with plans on how to get involved with the mafia, building little voodoo dolls of Jian Yi and He Tian, going on drunken rants about how those guys were the worst people in the world, and basketball.

So it was no problem for Guan Shan to deduce that Jian Yi had to be wherever Zheng Xi was right now, probably acting just as carefree and confident as He Tian just had.

“Yes. I’m aware,” said Zheng Xi, voice pressed.

“Oh…” Guan Shan hesitated, wondering how the reunion was going on their end.

“I… uhm… I may have done something stupid, which I hoped you could help me with… for maximal revenge potential.”

“I’m listening.”

“I… I kinda told He Tian that I have a boyfriend. And since I obviously don’t, I need you to-“

“What a coincidence,” Zheng Xi said on the other end. “I told Jian Yi the exact same thing.”


	2. Chapter 2

Later that day, Guan Shan and Zheng Xi met up in the tall building they had hung out at so often before their friends’ sudden disappearance. It felt strange to come back to the place. Somehow surreal, like a fever dream. The stairwell was too clean and shiny and unnecessarily big, yet none of them had ever noticed a cleaning crew coming through here. Back then, they hadn’t wondered about it, but now everything regarding this building seemed a little magical. They opted for the stairs instead of the elevator, so they’d have more time to get their stories straight.

“Do we have to think of pet names?” Guan Shan pondered.

“I could call you my angry little carrot,” Zheng Xi offered heartlessly.

“Shut up!” hissed Guan Shan. “You’re not taking this seriously!”

Zheng Xi stopped walking to glare at Guan Shan with his arms crossed. He seemed to be in a funny mood. Simultaneously lighter and tenser than usual. “Fine,” he said. “What do you want to do? Should we hold hands the whole time? Wear matching earrings? Maybe some practice-kissing before we go in?”

“I’m just saying!” Guan Shan jumped down the two steps he had walked ahead. “I want to really rub it in!”

“Fine then.”

Before he could register what was happening, Guan Shan found himself pressed against the wall, Zheng Xi’s intense stare only inches away from his face.

“What the-” Guan Shan spluttered. For a moment he thought He Tian was standing before him. Zheng Xi really knew how to copy that special aura.

“Don’t look so scared now, little Mo,” Zheng Xi’s voice sounded even lower than usual, a spot-on imitation of He Tian’s. “I won’t bite… too hard.”

Damn – had this always slumbered beneath the surface or had Zheng Xi just practiced it? Guan Shan couldn’t move – not because Zheng Xi was holding him in place, but those eyes had him pinned down. And they were coming closer, too. Guan Shan swallowed hard, waiting in anticipation for the space between them to close. But instead, Zheng Xi’s eyes suddenly changed, looking much less intense. It took a moment for Guan Shan to notice.

“Are you _laughing_?” He finally screeched, pushing Zheng Xi away from him.

“I’m sorry!” Zheng Xi said, voice barely under control. “It’s just… I didn’t know you were _that_ into the intimidation-thing.”

“Am not!” Guan Shan clamored. He could feel his head burning hot and couldn’t remember ever having been this embarrassed. Zheng Xi could be such an asshole sometimes. “I was just going along with it for the sake of revenge!”

“Relax!” Zheng Xi said, forcing his own voice to sound calm. “You were right, this wasn’t such a bad idea. I can see why He Tian likes to tease you so much. He’ll be furious when he sees me doing it to you.”

“I don’t want you to tease me!” Guan Shan said. His head still felt hot and he had to stop the urge to hide his face behind his hands. “I want them to think we have something better than one teasing the other all the time! Something cute, you know?”

Zheng Xi pondered it for a while, until Guan Shan’s breathing was back to normal and hopefully his face color, too. Finally, Zheng Xi nodded, “Cute, okay. I can do that.” He offered Guan Shan his hand to hold and Guan Shan hesitantly took it.

“So, you want to do it?” asked Zheng Xi.

“Do what?”

“Practice… you know.”

“Wha- what?” Guan Shan spluttered again. “I never said anything of…”

“You were going along with it for the sake of revenge. That’s what you said,” Zheng Xi reminded him, looking amused.

Right. Guan Shan tried to fight down another case of the tomato heads. He wouldn’t be defeated this time.

“Well, if you’re so desperate to…”

He let go of the hand and took a step into Zheng Xi’s space, trying to show some initiative. It seemed to work – Zheng Xi looked a lot less intimidating. Even a bit unsure. It gave Guan Shan the courage to lean in, but not enough to go all the way.

For a moment, they stood like that, awkwardly hovering in each other’s space. Then Zheng Xi managed to close the distance and softly pressed his lips against Guan Shan’s.

There were a lot of thoughts in Guan Shan’s head – the most prominent of them was about his own hands. He had no idea where to put them. He closed his eyes in the hopes that Zheng Xi would do the same and not see how his face was burning up again. Their lips stayed like that – just gently pressed against each other without moving. Someone would have to do something soon, or this would be the most awkward kiss in the history of kisses.

Finally, Zheng Xi pulled back a little, leaned his forehead against Guan Shan’s and went in again. His hands were back on Guan Shan’s hips. It felt better like that, but Guan Shan’s own hands were still just awkwardly hanging down. He settled for Zheng Xi’s upper arms, which felt a bit stiff, but he wasn’t ready for anything else yet. Again, Zheng Xi’s lips pressed against Guan Shan’s, this time opening a little. Guan Shan went along with it. He had been so preoccupied by the hands-problem that he barely managed to concentrate on the kiss. But now he could feel the heat from Zheng Xi’s mouth on his lips and the kiss started to feel more intimate… and good. Guan Shan’s arms automatically found their way around Zheng Xi’s neck now. He wasn’t thinking anymore. Their bodies melted into each other, their lips moved on their own.

Just when Guan Shan started to get really into it, Zheng Xi pulled away and leaned against the wall, breathing hard.

“Well…” he hummed, voice heavy. “I’m glad we practiced that.”

“Yeah, we would have sucked at it,” Guan Shan agreed. “We both know that we’re sad virgins, no need to let those bastards know it too.”

“Alright then,” Zheng Xi’s lips turned into a dark, mischievous smile. A very rare sight on him that Guan Shan had come to appreciate. “Let’s go and really rub it in.”

…

He Tian opened the door looking calm and composed, but his expression faltered when he saw just Guan Shan and Zheng Xi in the door.

“You’re finally here,” he said, trying to catch a glimpse into the hallway. “And I see you came alone.”

There was no time to clarify anything – Jian Yi was just returning from the bathroom, jeans not even fully pulled up yet. He tried to jump over the couch and got tangled in his own pants, falling on the floor with a bang.

“What took you so long?” he yowled, seemingly unfazed. Guan Shan and Zheng Xi exchanged a quick glance, both trying not to blush.

“We took the stairs,” said Zheng Xi and expertly avoided Jian Yi throwing himself at him. Guan Shan was not so lucky. He got crushed in a brutal hug.  
“It’s been so long!” Jian Yi said it as if they were just old friends reuniting after they had all moved to different universities.

Guan Shan managed to peel Jian Yi off and took a few steps into the apartment, almost getting whiplash from the familiarity. There were unpacked boxes everywhere. Even two years ago, He Tian had never really settled in. Guan Shan had taken it for laziness, but maybe He Tian had always known he wouldn’t stay for long.

Two hands snuck around Guan Shan’s middle from behind and a warm breath grazed his ear.

“So – you already broke up with your boyfriend after seeing me today?”

Guan Shan suppressed a shudder. He had to stay cool or those guys would realize something was up.

“Noo…” he drawled, carefully opening the arms around his middle and turning around to face He Tian. “I brought him, like you asked.”

He Tian looked confused, glanced over his shoulder towards the door. Looked back again.

“What, he’s imaginary?”

Guan Shan snorted. They had no idea. This would be fun. He could see Zheng Xi walking towards him out of the corner of his eyes, but he made a point of staring at He Tian the whole time, even when Zheng Xi’s arms wrapped around his middle like He Tian’s just had.

“They’re pretty slow, huh?” Zheng Xi said and casually pressed a kiss to Guan Shan’s temple.

Guan Shan didn’t even have to fight a blush – he was too caught up in He Tian’s slowly widening eyes. It was a beautiful sight to behold.

“NO WAY!” came a screech from the back of the room. Jian Yi stormed towards them, looking like they had just grown second heads. “YOU’RE JOKING!”

“Yeah…” said He Tian with an unsure chuckle. “You _are_ joking.”

Zheng Xi gave a thoughtful hum. “Is that so?” he asked, turning to whisper in Guan Shan’s ear. “What you did to me last night sure didn’t feel like a joke.”

This time Guan Shan couldn’t fight the blush. Luckily, that only added to the authenticity.

“Don’t… don’t just say things like that! They don’t need to know!”

Zheng Xi’s answer was drowned out by a long howl as Jian Yi dramatically sank to the floor. No one told him to be quiet – He Tian just stood there, looking white as a sheet.

“My God,” Zheng Xi finally said. “What did you expect? That we’d spend our best years waiting for your theoretical return?”

“You weren’t even gay!” Jian Yi cried.

“Hmmm,” Zheng Xi hummed again, turning back to whisper to Guan Shan, “What we did last night also didn’t feel very straight, huh?”

“Fucking hell!” Guan Shan spluttered. Zheng Xi was really going for it. He and that blank face of his were natural liars.

Jian Yi was beating his fist on the floor in anguish. Somehow he had become even more melodramatic than Guan Shan remembered him. “So unfair!” he wailed.

Finally, He Tian woke up from his stupor. He kicked at Jian Yi. “Be quiet!” he said, and then, “A word.” He picked Jian Yi up from the floor and carried him away into the bathroom like a misbehaving kitten. 

Guan Shan and Zheng Xi exchanged a glance.

“Did you take acting lessons somewhere?” asked Guan Shan.

“Did_ you?_ How can you blush on command?”

“Uhm…” Guan Shan blushed again. “Like that,” he lied.

Zheng Xi looked impressed.

“Alright – so what do we do when they come back?” Guan Shan asked. “Sit on the couch, you on my lap?”

“Sounds good,” Zheng Xi agreed, pushing him over towards the couch.

They had just sat down when He Tian and Jian Yi emerged from the bathroom, both wearing solemn expressions.

What now, Guan Shan wondered. Then he noticed them holding hands. For some reason, that didn’t shock him in the slightest. On the contrary – he had to bite his tongue, or he would have laughed out loud.

“We have something to announce, too,” Jian Yi said. His voice still sounded rough from the screaming and crying before. He sniffed, holding his head up high as if the news he was about to proclaim would get the same reaction as Guan Shan and Zheng Xi being a couple. As if it wasn’t painfully obvious what they were about to pull.

“We’re now dating.”

“Oh,” said Zheng Xi. Guan Shan could feel his body shake a little. “That makes sense.” He turned towards Guan Shan, only to hide how his eyes watered from barely suppressed laughter. “Doesn’t that make sense, Mo?”

“Those two spending two years together without fucking? I would have been more shocked by that,” said Guan Shan truthfully. Even before they had disappeared, Guan Shan had sometimes wondered if they’d had an arrangement, seeing as neither of their love interests had figured out their sexuality yet.

Of course, Zheng Xi and Guan Shan had known as soon as their suitors were gone, which was just the irony of life, but there was no need to tell them that.  
“This is great,” said Zheng Xi. “It all works out in the end.”

Neither Jian Yi nor He Tian looked like they shared that opinion, but they kept holding hands as if they were hanging off a cliff.

“So…” Guan Shan drawled. “Are you going to feed us, or did I just come here to cook for you again? Because I don’t need that money anymore.”

“I guess we could order take-out,” said He Tian, trying very hard not to look like he had bit into something sour. “Come on!” he barked at Jian Yi and pulled him towards the kitchen, where a flyer from a restaurant was pinned to the fridge. He folded a paper airplane out of it and threw it towards Zheng Xi and Guan Shan. It landed in a completely different corner.

“Until that’s ready…” He opened the fridge, which was filled from top to bottom with various fruit juices, syrups and booze. Finally, the well-known grin adorned his face again. “Jian Yi here will mix us some tasty cocktails.”

…

The plan to get Zhang Xi and Guan Shan drunk worked against their best efforts to drink as little as possible. Jian Yi’s mixing-talents were abysmal. Their drinks were at least 99% vodka.

On the bright side, He Tian and Jian Yi were at least five times as drunk.

Right now, they were swaying in each other’s arms, singing ‘Toxic’ by Britney Spears.

“I have a feeling that’s all they did when they were with the mafia,” said Zheng Xi. “They’re too in sync for the state they’re in.” He had his arm around Guan Shan’s shoulder and held him so tightly that it hurt a little.

Still, Guan Shan welcomed the gesture. They had to stick together. They had to be careful. Those bastards had gotten them drunk to lower their defenses, but that would not be happening. In fact, their defenses would be stronger than ever!

“Don’t ever let go of me!” Guan Shan whispered. “The moment you let go, I will run to He Tian, I can feel it.”

“You feel that strongly for him?”

“I mean, I will run to punch him in the face,” Guan Shan clarified. His ears were ringing from the off-tune singing. “But I know he would turn it into a wrestling match and pin me to the floor with his whole body, and then he would just look at me with those dark eyes as his breathing slowly steadies, and then I’ll feel his-”

“I’ll stop you right there,” said Zheng Xi.

Guan Shan groaned at his own line of thought. At least the bastards – as they were now and forever dubbed – sang so loud that they couldn’t possibly overhear the conversation.

“Honestly, I don’t know how long I can hold this up,” Guan Shan admitted. “I mean – my first instinct when looking at him is still to punch him, but by the fourth or fifth instinct I’m already sucking-“

“Okay – again – I have to stop you.”

Zheng Xi regarded him with a thoughtful look.

“I know how you feel, though,” he said, glancing over at Jian Yi. “And I’m not talking about any sucking of anything. It’s just… that guy’s my best friend. Has been since we were this tall…” A wavering hand showed the approximate height to be at the sofa’s sitting level, which couldn’t really be true. “I vowed to protect him, but in the end I failed.”

“He wasn’t harmed, was he?” said Guan Shan.

Zheng Xi shrugged his shoulders. “You know what I would really like to do?” he whispered so low that Guan Shan could barely hear it. “I would really like to hug him close. Just like I used to.”

“And there you have it,” Guan Shan nodded gravely. “That’s why we need to stick together. You see what the alcohol is doing to us? Remember – they got us drunk for a reason. They want to…” now his own voice was barely audible, too, “Take advantage!”

Zheng Xi threw a grim look towards the other two. “Those vile bastards!” he slurred. Then, without a warning, he suddenly stood.

“Hey!” Guan Shan cried, shocked. “What are you doing? Don’t go over there!”

“I’m not,” said Zheng Xi.

“Don’t leave me alone!”

“You wanna come watch me pee?” Zheng Xi asked. It was suddenly quiet. He Tian and Jian Yi had stopped singing and awaited the answer curiously.

Guan Shan’s head felt like exploding again. “Of course not!” he screeched.

Zheng Xi nodded, as if there had been a different possible answer to that. “Stay strong,” he said, ruffling Guan Shan’s hair.

Then he was gone.

And Guan Shan was alone with two wolfish smiles and two pairs of glinting eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

„Sooo… you and Zheng Xi, huh? That sure is surprising.”

Guan Shan sat on the couch, caught between two bodies pressed to his sides and keeping him in place. He tried to stare straight ahead and not say a word. Zheng Xi had to return from the bathroom at one point. 

“How did it happen? We want to know everything!” demanded Jian Yi. He was so close that his hair tickled Guan Shan’s ears. “Did you drug him? Is it blackmail? Or maybe you’re paying him so much that he can’t refuse?”

Forgetting his silent vow to not say anything until Zheng Xi was back, Guan Shan turned to yell at Jian Yi, “Why the hell would I have to pay him?”

“Sorry,” came a purr from Guan Shan’s other side. “Jian Yi spent too much time with the mafia, he doesn’t know how normal people live anymore.”

Guan Shan turned to look at He Tian and immediately regretted it. He was so close. Eyes heavy-lidded and a lazy grin tugging at his lips. The fun-drunk part was officially over; He Tian was ready for bed. Either to sleep or to keep the party going there. Not with Guan Shan, though. Not tonight!

“I don’t have to sit here and listen to these accusations!” Guan Shan said, trying to get up, but it was impossible. He Tian was sprawled all over him. He tried to yell for Zheng Xi’s help, but all it did was remind Jian Yi that his beloved was alone in the bathroom from where he didn’t have anywhere to run off to.

“I’m suddenly feeling very sick, I think I have to puke,” Jian Yi announced and hopped off from the couch to run around the corner towards the bathroom. 

Finally, a little more room. Guan Shan tried to discreetly scoot towards the empty place, but He Tian’s body became impossibly heavier and kept him pinned. 

“Get off me!” Guan Shan demanded, shaking He Tian’s shoulders. “Didn’t you say you respected my new life, including new boyfriend?”

“So?” He Tian gave a wide grin, revealing a lie before the words were even spoken. “I’m not coming on to you. My friendship was always very hands-on.”

There was no way to deny that, so Guan Shan sank back into the couch, defeated.

“Shouldn’t you hold your actual boyfriend’s hair back while he pukes?” he said, trying a different approach. He Tian’s and Jian Yi’s act wasn’t very convincing so far. They probably wouldn’t even remember it tomorrow. 

“Pfff,” He Tian sprayed and waved his hand dismissively. “I did enough of that in the last two years. Glad to have someone take it off my hands.”

“What a great relationship,” Guan Shan said drily. 

He Tian gave another _Pfff_ at his words. “That’s just to make you guys jealous.”

“Don’t admit it so openly!”

He Tian grinned. His head had sunk down onto Guan Shan’s thigh, from where he gave a lopsided grin. “Is it working?”

“Not even a bit,” Guan Shan said and meant it. 

He Tian dismissed it with a shrug. “Will eventually,” he slurred. “I know you want me.”

“I want you…” Guan Shan said, slowly reaching for a cushion on the couch. He Tian’s eyes lit up for a second, then Guan Shan pressed the cushion against his face. “To choke on this fucking cushion!”

Even when drunk off his mind, He Tian still managed to overpower Guan Shan with ease. He took a hold of Guan Shan and rolled him off the couch, heavily landing on top of him, cushion falling from Guan Shan’s hands when He Tian grabbed them. They stared into each other’s eyes, unable to breathe for a moment. Then – and Guan Shan didn’t know if he was glad or annoyed – Zheng Xi’s voice disrupted any two-year-old daydreams from becoming reality. 

“Oh, I know this move,” he said, kicking at He Tian’s side to get him off Guan Shan. “Done it a couple times myself. Always works. But I would prefer it if you could stick to your own boyfriend with those dirty tricks.”

He Tian got to his feet without taking his eyes off Guan Shan. Only when he stood did he look up to stare at Zheng Xi. They stared each other down without saying anything. 

Zheng Xi won. His face was naturally unmoving and He Tian was too drunk to stand straight. He wobbled, then grinned again. 

“So protective,” he hummed. “It’s almost cute.”

Zheng Xi didn’t react to his words and instead crouched down to help Guan Shan to his feet, not letting go of him even when he stood, which Guan Shan was very glad for.

“What happened to Jian Yi?” asked Guan Shan.

“Came to watch me pee. Ended up actually puking,” said Zheng Xi. 

“Gross,” said He Tian, unmoved by the glares the other two sent him. He stumbled towards the bed and fell in it face first. His voice was muted when he spoke again. “Anyone’s welcome to join me here!”

Guan Shan and Zheng Xi looked at each other again, both coming to a silent agreement before they rounded the corner towards the bathroom and found Jian Yi sitting by the side of the toilet, still looking a little green. 

“Wash your mouth out!” Zheng Xi ordered and lifted him to his feet to push him towards the sink. 

Jian Yi obediently gurgled some water and let himself be pulled out of the bathroom by Zheng Xi and Guan Shan. They delivered him to He Tian’s bed, ignored He Tian’s disappointed whine, and pushed Jian Yi into the sheets. Another silent exchange of looks between them had them turn both of the bastards onto their backs to fumble on their jeans’ zippers.

“Oh!” He Tian murmured, biting his lips. “That’s… hmmm… unexpected?”

Jian Yi was just staring at Zheng Xi with tears in his eyes as his pants were being pulled down his legs. 

“I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist,” He Tian continued, but was silenced when Guan Shan gave a particularly violent tug and groaned in disgust when he saw how He Tian’s underwear bulged. 

The same sound came from Guan Shan’s other side, so he didn’t risk a glance at Jian Yi. Instead, he threw the jeans to the floor and reached for the blanket. He and Zheng Xi had to pull on it with united forces to free it from the bastards’ weight. Then they were finally able to cover the offensive sight before them.

“Teasing vixens,” He Tian slurred, but he looked just as happy about being tucked into bed. 

“We’ll return tomorrow morning to check on you,” said Zheng Xi. “Does anyone need a bucket next to the bed?”

They both shook their head no, but Guan Shan still moved a waste basket next to Jian Yi’s side, just to be sure. 

It was quiet for a while as Guan Shan and Zheng Xi looked at the two men on the bed, who were trying hard not to doze off. 

He Tian and Jian Yi were responsible for so much of Guan Shan’s and Zheng Xi’s grief for the past two years, but still. They were glad they had come back. It had been… lonely, without them. 

“Don’t disappear again,” Zheng Xi said quietly. 

Neither He Tian nor Jian Yi were grinning anymore. The night had gotten to a point where it was no longer possible to keep the seriousness at bay with loads of alcohol and forced smiles. 

“We won’t,” promised He Tian. “We’re done with… with all of that.”

“We’ll see,” said Guan Shan. “Trust is not exactly our first instinct when it comes to you two.” He reached for Zheng Xi’s hand to make it unmistakable that they were a united front. “Anyway, as Zheng Xi said, we will return tomorrow with breakfast. You two, do whatever you want. We don’t care.”

They turned around and left the apartment, joined at the hands and the bastards’ intense stares in their backs.

As soon as the door closed behind them, they both fell back against it, sliding down to the floor and trying to keep the hysterical laughter as silent as possible. 

“Nice performance,” Zheng Xi whispered, shaking his head in disbelief. “It’s like we rehearsed that.”

“It’s because we meant it!” Guan Shan said, gasping for air. “Damn, my hands are shaking like crazy!”

“I can feel it.”

There was an awkward moment when they both realized that they were still holding hands. They let go without commenting on it and got back up on their feet. 

“So…” Zheng Xi said after a while. “I guess… we’ll try to go back to normal with these two now? Hanging out with them, eating breakfast together, go out at night, little trips here and there. Just like that?”

“It’s not like we have a choice,” Guan Shan sighed. 

Zheng Xi didn’t have to ask what he meant by that. Somehow, the four of them were connected. Even if they got on each other’s nerves most of the time, it felt like… like no matter what universe they were in, they would always end up stuck with each other. 

“I still can’t believe they’re back…” Zheng Xi said, more to himself. 

Guan Shan had to agree. 

They wouldn’t make it easy for He Tian and Jian Yi. They would fight them every step of the way regarding their romantic advances. But when it came to their free time, they had no choice but to spend every second of it with them. For two years, there had been a huge hole in their lives and no matter what they tried to fill it with, it could never be fixed.

Until today.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took a little longer than usual^^' I got distracted with tianshan writing prompts on tumblr :D They're in my fic tag there, if anyone's interested^^

The next morning felt somewhat surreal. 

Guan Shan awoke with a headache and the memory of a dream so vivid, it felt like it couldn’t have been a dream at all. How many times had he dreamt of He Tian’s return? It was nothing new. So why did this one feel so different?

The sound of heavy vibrating against wood alerted him of an incoming call. He turned in his bed, fetched the phone from his nightstand and answered it with a groan.

“I had a very strange dream,” began Zheng Xi. The words made Guan Shan shoot up too fast and he blacked out for a moment. Stupid headache. 

“Are you still there?” asked Zheng Xi.

“I guess,” Guan Shan said hoarsely, “it’s pretty unlikely that we had the exact same dream.”

They went silent, contemplating the possibility, until Zheng Xi said, “Damn… they really came back, huh?”

“And we promised to come by with breakfast,” Guan Shan remembered. He glanced at the time on his phone. It was barely 8 o’clock on a Saturday. There was more than enough time.

“Can you get the food?” Guan Shan asked. “I need to do something… I’ll meet you there at 9?”

“Done.” 

Guan Shan ended the call and tossed his phone to the side, rolling out of bed to collect something to wear. He could have easily slept another half hour, but he had never felt so awake. Also, he had a plan and he wanted to put it into motion as fast as possible. 

\--- 

His plan led him to the flower shop, which was currently manned by his mother.

“You’re awake this early?” she asked, surprised to see him when she looked up from where she was arranging the flowerpots on the floor. “I thought it got late yesterday.”

“I need to borrow the delivery car,” said Guan Shan. “Can I?”

His mother still looked surprised, but in the end just shrugged her shoulders. “If you return it by Monday, it’s no problem.”

Guan Shan nodded his thanks and went through the backroom towards the garage. The delivery car was a shabby old van, green paint peeling off here and there and rust eating at various parts. He didn’t know why his mother had bought this half-dead thing off their neighbors instead of investing in a new one. It wasn’t like she couldn’t afford it. But he suspected it had something to do with how their neighbors really needed the money and his mother knew what that felt like. Besides, the car, despite its looks and sounds, had never given up on them. Guan Shan trusted it more than he trusted He Tian. 

It was annoying how He Tian managed to sneak into every one of Guan Shan’s thoughts, but not completely new, so Guan Shan suffered it without falling to his knees and trying to pull his hair out, like he had done in the beginning. There was still a small chance that he and Zheng Xi had fallen victim to a strange and rare case of synchronized dreaming, but the headache made it pretty clear that someone had tried to get him sloshed yesterday. 

Once the van was loaded up, Guan Shan wished his mother a pleasant day, suffered a reluctant kiss on the cheek and then booked it.

\--- 

Zheng Xi arrived at the apartment building just as Guan Shan pulled up to it and almost ran into a wall when he was greeted by the van’s ship-like honk. 

“The hell?” Zheng Xi asked, once Guan Shan got out of the car. “What’s all this?”

“Welcome present,” said Guan Shan. He didn’t elaborate further but opened the back doors to the van to show what he brought. The whole van was packed with potted plants. 

Zheng Xi looked even more confused. “That’s nice,” he said, presenting the plastic bag with freshly steamed buns. “I only brought buns.”

“Can you help?”

Together, and under scrutiny of various tenants who came out of their apartments to examine the early morning noise, they lifted all of the plants into the elevator. It had to go up four times until the van was empty. 

Since neither He Tian nor Jian Yi had gotten up to lock the door yesterday, it was easy to get in. Good thing there was nothing that could have been stolen, except for a fridge-load of booze. 

The drunkards were still lying in He Tian’s bed, snoring away happily. The bucket was thankfully empty. 

“Wow,” said Zheng Xi, once he had battled himself through the jungle of house plants standing in the hallway and finally stood in front of the bed. “They were actually real.”

Guan Shan had settled for a quick glance at them both, had felt a new wave of rage at those carefree faces, and turned back towards his plants to arrange them throughout the apartment. It didn’t take long to go from an uninhabited-looking, cardboard-strewn wasteland to a beautiful garden and Guan Shan happily leaned back against the couch to look at his masterpiece. 

“Looks nice,” Zheng Xi commented from the kitchen. “But do you really think he’ll keep them alive?”

“He’d better, if he wants to keep me as a friend,” said Guan Shan. He was watering the big ficus benjamini with a spray bottle, hoping it would survive the location change. Those trees weren’t big fans of moving and it would take a lot of care to make it prosper. The spray bottle was promptly whipped from Guan Shan’s hands.

“Hey!” Guan Shan protested, turning to see Zheng Xi walk towards the bed, the spray bottle aimed at the bastards like a pistol. “Oh… never mind, keep going.”

It took more than a few sprays to wake them up, but once they were awake, their screams sounded like music in Guan Shan’s ears. Jian Yi rolled off the bed, colliding with the bucket standing there, while He Tian was smart enough to hide under the covers.

“Breakfast’s ready!” Zheng Xi deadpanned, like he hadn’t just sprayed them both like they were naughty house cats.

“Morning,” groaned Jian Yi. “How nice of you to come by.”

“Why are you all so loud?” complained He Tian.

“You were the one screaming,” said Guan Shan.

Zheng Xi went to kick at Jian Yi’s legs to make him get up and sit down at the table, tossing him a t-shirt he had found hanging over the back of the sofa. 

“This stinks of He Tian,” Jian Yi complained but put it on either way.

“You both stink like a brewery if that brewery only brew manure,” said Guan Shan. 

He Tian groaned again. “Please stop talking! It makes my head hurt!” He finally lowered the covers to squint at them. “And why the hell does my apartment look like a jungle?”

“Oh!” Jian Yi said, only just noticing that something had changed. How blind could someone be?

Guan Shan sat down at the table, next to Zheng Xi, and ignored the bastards’ questioning looks, biting into a steamed bun instead. He Tian appeared in the seat on his other side a minute later, hair mussed and still clad only in his underwear. 

“Why does my apartment look like a jungle?” he repeated, looking at Guan Shan.

Guan Shan shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t see you using all that space for anything else. Besides, you practically live in a greenhouse, what with all those huge windows. The plants don’t get half as much sun back in the shop.”

“So I’m helping you grow and sell plants?”

“Great, you already have a job, He Tian. What the hell am I supposed to do?” said Jian Yi through a mouthful of food.

“You’ll pay me for this then?” He Tian grinned, clapping Guan Shan’s back. “What a relief.”

“What the fuck do you need anymore money for?” Guan Shan snapped.

“Oh, you’re mistaken. Jian Yi and I, we’re poor like shit now.”

Guan Shan exchanged a glance with Zheng Xi, whose brows were furrowed even more than usual with meant that this was news to him, too.

“See, we weren’t supposed to come back here and since we’re going against our families’ wishes, we were left without their support,” He Tian explained, calmly putting a few buns on his plate.

“Except for this huge apartment, you mean,” said Zheng Xi.

“Well, yes. But I have to share it with Jian Yi now. And they gave us a small amount of money to get started in our new, grown-up lives.”

The whole thing didn’t seem to bother He Tian all too much, so Guan Shan suspected that ‘small’ amount of money was more than enough.

“How much?” he asked.

“10000 Yuan,” said Jian Yi, pouting. “It’s basically nothing.”

“You don’t even have to pay rent!” Guan Shan snapped. “So you can live on that for quite a while before you need to find a job!”

“Actually, it’s already gone,” said He Tian, shrugging.

“What?” Guan Shan screeched. “How?”

“Spent it all on the alcohol,” Jian Yi explained and looked surprised when the bun in his chopsticks was suddenly catapulted to the floor by Zheng Xi’s hands.

“You spent 10000 yuan on booze?” Zheng Xi roared, making everyone, including He Tian, flinch for a second. Guan Shan had never seen him this mad or this loud. Before anyone else could say anything, Zheng Xi had gotten up, collected everything edible off the table and put it in his plastic bag. When he spoke, it looked like smoke might come out of his mouth at any moment.

“Guan Shan! We’re going!”

They ignored Jian Yi’s whines and pleads. Guan Shan still couldn’t wrap his head around the fact that two grown-up men would spend everything they had on a fridge full of alcohol. Then again, he couldn’t be too mad about it, for some reason. He almost pitied them. They were so spoiled, so removed from the realm of normal, so used to have their every material need satisfied – of course they wouldn’t even think twice about money. Well, He Tian at least. Guan Shan wasn’t so sure if Jian Yi had grown up rich, but then he also didn’t know what their lives were like for the last two years.

They were out of the door a minute later, Zheng Xi still fuming as he pushed the button for the elevator and then began stomping down the stairs when it wouldn’t come fast enough.

“Slow down!” Guan Shan called, struggling to keep up with him. “Damn man, I never saw you lose your cool so frequently.”

“I know!” Zheng Xi groaned, suddenly standing still. Guan Shan almost collided with him. “I can’t help it.”

“It’s their faces,” Guan Shan nodded. “You just wanna deck them.”

“Yeah,” Zheng Xi said. They were both aware that punching them wasn’t the only thing they would like to do with those faces, but no one said anything.

“They’re gonna starve if we don’t help them out,” Guan Shan finally said. 

“I know. They’d be dead in a week.”

They were silent for a moment, both contemplating how to deal with the situation.

“You know…” Guan Shan said, “I never had any doubt about where all my mom’s good fortune came from. So I feel kind of obligated to…”

“Fine,” said Zheng Xi. “I can’t really let Jian Yi starve, either. Well. Maybe only for today.”

“Yeah, for today seems fine,” Guan Shan agreed. 

Next to them, the elevator beeped as a neighbor got out on their level. Guan Shan and Zheng Xi went in, both silent on their way down. 

Guan Shan played with the phone in his hands.

Only when he sat behind the steering wheel of his van did he send the text he had typed in.

**To: He Tian**

_If you really need that job, go down to the shop and talk to my mom. She’s the boss. And as I know, you have no problem sweet-talking her._

_(ps: I’ll be on the basketball court at 3pm. Hope u practiced.)_


	5. Chapter 5

He Tian already sat in the shadow of a dove tree when Guan Shan arrived at the basketball court. Either he had managed to chase away the teenagers that usually hung out here or it was simply too hot for them to leave their caves. Guan Shan didn’t ask. He threw the basketball at He Tian’s head (it was caught) and got into position.

They had played seven games before they even exchanged the first words. It was He Tian who broke the silence.

“I thought this would take some frustration off you, but that won’t work if you’re so bad at it.”

“I have two jobs and cooking classes to attend to. What’s your excuse?”

No answer. Guan Shan turned to find He Tian with the ball clutched in his hands, staring at him.

“What?”

“Let’s take a break,” said He Tian, already heading towards the tree. Guan Shan followed without protesting. The shadows looked so tempting and Guan Shan sweated at least twice as much as He Tian. He could really use a break to catch his breath.

“Two jobs?” He Tian asked, once they had both sat down and leant against opposite sides of the same tree. “I thought you didn’t have to worry about money anymore?”

“Why do you care?”

“Because I do. And I wanna catch up. So?”

“It’s not because of the money,” Guan Shan sighed. “I help out with the family business, because I want to. It was the best thing to happen to us in ages and it brings us closer together as a family. But the cooking school I go to demands that I work at a restaurant.”

“Didn’t your family use to have a restaurant? Why didn’t you open one again? Why a flower shop?”

“We can pretty much keep a flower shop going with just the three of us. With a restaurant, we’d have to hire help, and… Well. The last time some of them got seriously hurt. They were innocent people. We don’t want to take that risk again, in case…”

“Your mom hired me, though,” He Tian said.

“You’re not innocent people.”

“How would she know?”

Guan Shan shrugged. “Because I told her,” he said. “Not about who you are or anything. Just that she shouldn’t worry about hiring you.”

The other side of the tree stayed quiet, so Guan Shan finally turned around to find He Tian looking lost in thought. 

“Play another round?” Guan Shan asked, startling He Tian. 

“Sure.”

They got up and walked back onto the court, although the energy had left them both, leaving them with wobbly knees and dragging their feet. He Tian laughed when Guan Shan lost the balls a few times because he suddenly forgot how to dribble. Guan Shan didn’t find it necessary to pull himself together if it resulted in He Tian laughing. There had been times when he would have gotten mad, but after not hearing that laugh for two years, Guan Shan realized that it didn’t bother him at all.

An hour later, Guan Shan laid on the ground, staring up at the sky. He couldn’t move a muscle. The sun was blacked out when He Tian’s face took it’s place, raining down droplets of sweat. 

“You know what we should do?” He Tian asked. 

Guan Shan answered with a grunt. 

“Go on a vacation, just the four of us. Somewhere far away from everyone, where we can grow close again.”

“You want to have a speedrun for our friendship?”

“You know what I mean.”

“It’s a stupid idea. You don’t have any money to go on vacation anyway.”

“I’ll save up for it.”

“I’m not sure you know how long it takes to save up for a vacation. You also have to buy food and stuff with the money you earn, you know? And you’re not anywhere near full-time.”

“Fine!” He Tian’s whole face was beaming. Not his expression (which looked disgruntled) – but the outline of his head, which was blacking out the sun. He looked like an annoyed angel. “We just go on the cheapest vacation we can think of. Does anyone in your family own a run-down cabin in the woods?”

“We’re not vacationing in a gratuitous horror movie premise,” said Guan Shan. He wondered when he had learned to keep up a conversation while experiencing a moment of pure and utter admiration. It was unfair how beautiful He Tian had become. And it was unfair that Guan Shan wasn’t there to see the slow progression. He would have been used to it. Now it was just a punch in the guts.

“I’ll think of something eventually,” He Tian promised. “For now – you wanna invite me to some ice cream? I can’t bear this heat for a moment longer.”

Guan Shan let He Tian help him to his feet and together they went to look for the ball, which had rolled off somewhere. Then they went to pick up their discarded shirts from under the tree.  
“What the fuck are you doing?”

He Tian had stopped in his tracks to pull down Guan Shan’s pants a bit, running his thumb over the skin there. 

“Just checking for tan lines,” He Tian grinned, still laughing when Guan Shan pushed him away.   
“You haven’t grown up even a bit! I don’t think we need a vacation to get to know each other again – I never forgot how annoying you are.”

“Just like you promised.”

Guan Shan put his shirt on in silence. He _had_ said that before, or something along those lines. He remembered because it had been the first time he noticed something in He Tian’s eyes. Something soft, where there had only been hardness. 

“Two scoops.”

“Huh?”

“Of ice cream. That’s all you get.”

“I thought we might share a sundae,” He Tian smiled. “If I had invited you, I would have tricked you into sharing a sundae.”

“Looks like I have the money now, so we’re playing by my rules.”

“That’s okay, I always wanted a sugar daddy.”

“I hate you so much.”

\---

“Okay. Since we are benevolent people, we will try this again. But you might want to think twice before you open your mouths this time.”

Zheng Xi looked around the table, making sure that everyone understood before he distributed the boxes with take-away food. 

Jian Yi took a box of noodles with arms so weak they almost couldn’t hold up the chopsticks. He had mastered the art of looking pitiful. Even his cheeks were hollowed, as if he had starved for a week. He Tian, on the other hand, had stuffed himself with ice cream not two hours ago, so he was as chipper as always. 

“What do you guys think of a vacation?” he prompted, ignoring Guan Shan’s glare. “Just the four of us, away from all human civilization?”

“Sounds like a horror movie to me,” said Zheng Xi and Guan Shan made sure to smile at him as brightly and openly as he could muster. 

“So gross,” He Tian grumbled. 

“I can’t afford a vacation,” said Jian Yi, putting aside the empty box of noodles.

“Gee,” said Guan Shan. “Did you inhale that?”

“I don’t have a job!”

“Get one. It’s not that hard,” said He Tian. 

“You were just lucky.” Jian Yi turned to Guan Shan with pleading eyes. “Does your mom need anymore help in the flower shop?”

“No. And you guys should really think about what you’re gonna do about school. I doubt the mafia provides a high school diploma.”

“They allow us to take the finals on the grounds of having been home-schooled,” He Tian explained. 

“So it’s no problem for me.”

“Have you been home-schooled?” Zheng Xi asked. 

“Sure,” said Jian Yi. “In the arts of… let’s see…” He held up his fingers one after the other. “Self-defense, faking my own death, escaping from all sorts of captivation… I can dislocate and set my own shoulders, can you believe? Also, making a man swallow his own tongue with a single punch – that could come in handy at the finals.”

“It would probably be easier to just fake the diploma in your case,” said He Tian.

“Also a thing I was home-schooled in,” Jian Yi nodded. “Did I forget anything else?”

“You can swallow and spit up three tiny knifes,” He Tian said.

Zheng Xi shot up from the table, face white as a sheet. 

“He’s just joking about the knifes,” Jian Yi said and reached for another box of noodles, which he clutched protectively. 

But Zheng Xi hadn’t meant to take the food away. Instead, he walked behind Jian Yi’s chair, bent down, and hugged him so tightly that he almost spit up the food he had shoveled down his throat before. 

“O… oh!”

“I’m sorry… That this all happened to you.” Zheng Xi’s voice was barely audible, since his face was pressed against Jian Yi’s back. “You should have let me protect you.”

“You were just a boy,” He Tian said. “You wouldn’t have been able to.”

“I would have gone with you.”

He Tian snorted. “That’s just idiotic.”

“You could have at least asked!” Zheng Xi looked up now, shooting daggers at He Tian. “Instead of disappearing off the face of the earth. We mourned you!”

“We just wanted to protect you,” Jian Yi whispered.

“And we wanted to protect _you_! Or at least know that you’re safe.”

“We’re from a different world. You wouldn’t understand,” said He Tian. His voice was cold. “There are more important things than the feelings of some sixteen year old boys.”

Guan Shan looked away when he said that. Maybe it was true, but it still hurt. 

“We’re grown-ups now. They can’t keep us anymore,” said Jian Yi. “And He Tian promised to stay by my side.”

Zheng Xi let go of Jian Yi and went back to his chair, where he continued to eat in silence. Guan Shan laid a hand on his back. He didn’t shake it off.

“We should never talk about this again,” said He Tian, looking frustrated. “It’s in the past now.”

Zheng Xi paused, seconds away from shoving another bite into his mouth. He looked at He Tian. “I for one just can’t seem to let go of the past. Especially the one that’s not even two days away.”

“We’ll build a new past,” Jian Yi said. “It will just take some time. And it will be a past so great that those two years just fade away from our memories.”

“We’ll start with a vacation!” He Tian said, grinning when his plan worked out and everyone groaned in unison.

“Unfortunately my brother’s private island is out of the picture, but I’m still dead-set on that run-down cabin in the woods.”

“Sounds horrific,” Jian Yi drawled.

“Don’t be such a buzzkill!” He Tian chided. “If anyone could survive a masked chainsaw-killer it’s the two of us!”

“How did you even know?” asked Zheng Xi, his eyebrows furrowed. 

Guan Shan immediately got a nauseous feeling in his stomach. “Know what?”

“Oh – about your aunt’s cabin in the woods?” He Tian grinned. “I guess I’m just a very crafty guy.”

“No you’re not,” said Zheng Xi. “You’re just a pest.”

Guan Shan and Jian Yi both agreed, but He Tian was unfazed. He just clapped his hands.

“It’s settled, then. Next weekend. Cabin in the woods. I for one can’t wait.”

Guan Shan closed his eyes and sank down on the table in defeat. 

He might just become a chainsaw killer himself.


	6. Chapter 6

The text Guan Shan received the following morning went like this:

**He Tian: ** _Help! Little Mo! It’s an emergency! He’s dying!!!_

But when Guan Shan arrived at the apartment, sweating and soaked with the milk he had eaten his cornflakes in, Jian Yi opened the door with a toothbrush in his mouth and a wet ‘’Sup?’

“You’re not dying,” Guan Shan realized, looking past Jian Yi into the apartment. “Why are you not dying?”

“I thought you missed me at least a little bit,” Jian Yi said, managing to spew Guan Shan with toothpaste. 

For a moment, Guan Shan considered punching him in the throat. Just so he didn’t drive over here in his increasingly damp hoodie for nothing. 

Jian Yi was saved when He Tian came into the picture, looking flustered. 

“Finally! What took you so long? You need to help me, I don’t know what’s wrong with Benji!”

It was just weird enough to distract Guan Shan from his bloodlust. He shouldered his way past Jian Yi, who complained wetly, and followed He Tian to one of the potted plants he had delivered yesterday. It was the tallest one, the ficus benjamini. Some yellow leaves were strewn around it on the floor.

“Okay?” said Guan Shan, eyeing the plant wearily. “So?”

“He’s dying!” He Tian insisted. “Look, he’s losing all his leaves!”

“That’s normal,” said Guan Shan.

“No, it’s not! I googled it! He has a terrible sickness!”

Guan Shan took a deep breath to keep from face-palming. He Tian worrying about the plants he was supposed to look after was not the worst thing.

“First of all – googling plant symptoms is pretty much the same as googling human symptoms, okay? The plant will always be either pregnant or have cancer, just in plant-terms. Secondly, yellow leaves on a ficus benjamini are like a baby crying. Maybe it’s pooped its pants, maybe it’s thirsty, maybe it just got spooked by a huge pigeon. It’s almost impossible to tell. All you can do is make sure it has everything it needs and make some funny faces at it.”

He Tian looked up from his phone when Guan Shan stopped talking.

“Go on! I’m taking notes.”

“Okay?” Guan Shan said. He must have looked suspicious, because He Tian turned his phone around to show him. This time, Guan Shan really did face-palm.

“Don’t actually make funny faces at it! And it can’t poop its pants, it’s a plant!”

“So what do I do?” asked He Tian. He seemed eager to learn from Guan Shan, which was a completely new feeling. Guan Shan rather liked it.

“Be sure to give it the exact amount of water and sunshine it needs – not too much. This spot is fine and if you water it twice a week, it’ll live. You can take some fertilizer from the shop. Other than that, just check for pests and look at the roots now and again. If they’re taking up too much space, you need a bigger pot.”

“But if it’s all fine, why are the leaves yellow?”

“Because this plant is a little bitch,” said Guan Shan. “It probably just didn’t like the location change.”

“Hey!” He Tian said. “Don’t insult little Benji, he’s the best substitute I have for you.”

Guan Shan threw him a tired look, but that didn’t keep He Tian from explaining. 

“I’ll make sure he becomes a respectable plant by caring for him and loving him deeply.”

“I thought I was the Mo-substitute?” said Jian Yi, who just came back from the bathroom. He was without his toothbrush and had finally stopped being a human fountain.

“He Tian already told me you’re faking it to make us jealous. Didn’t work, by the way,” said Guan Shan.

He Tian gave his typical Cheshire-cat grin at that. “Oh!” he said. “You misunderstood! That doesn’t mean we’re not together.” He went to throw his arm around Jian Yi’s shoulder. “Just because Benji is my best Mo-substitute doesn’t mean he’s the only one!”

“I lose to a plant?” 

“You have to understand,” He Tian said with a serious look on his face. “Benji was given to me by the real Mo Guan Shan. But you have a much better body, I have to admit. Benji’s a little… twiggy.”

“I’ll forgive you if you keep praising my looks,” said Jian Yi. 

Guan Shan had to look away. They seemed so comfortable with each other. Even more so than they had two years ago.

They definitely fucked. One hundred percent. And now Guan Shan wasn’t so sure anymore if he wasn’t jealous. Maybe it was envy. Guan Shan had never been able to tell the difference. 

“Anyway,” said He Tian. The grin on his face told Guan Shan that he saw right through him, so Guan Shan made sure to look unfazed. “Can we offer you something to drink? We have tap water or whiskey.”

“You need to be fed again,” Guan Shan realized. “We’ll open a tab. I refuse to be your…”

“Sugar daddy,” He Tian said helpfully.

“Money honey,” Jian Yi offered.

“Oh, I love that!” said He Tian.

“Do you want to eat or be funny?” Guan Shan barked. That shut them both up. “I forgot to bring my wallet, since I thought someone was dying, so I’ll need to head home first.”

“Actually,” said He Tian, still grinning. “I have a better idea!”

\---

How exactly they talked him into it, Guan Shan wasn’t sure. All he knew was that they were suddenly right next to him when he walked through the door to his family home, casually greeting his mother in passing.

“Do you boys want something to eat?”

“We’re starving, actually!” Jian Yi said, charming smile strategically placed on his too good-looking face. Guan Shan’s mom fell for it hook line and sinker.

“You poor boys!” she gasped. “Sit down, I’ll see what I can do for you!”

Before Guan Shan could even grumble about how they were grown men, he was sitting between He Tian and Jian Yi in front of a full plate of pancakes. It was impossible to complain with a mouth full of pancakes, so he was defeated for now.

The smell lured his father into the kitchen. He sat down on one of the empty chairs, looked at the two strangers at the table and then he sent Guan Shan a not-so-discreet thumbs-up. 

He Tian immediately perked up at the sight of him.

“I’ve heard so much about you!” he lied, because Guan Shan hadn’t told him anything. The only thing he probably knew was that his father had been in prison, which wasn’t a great conversation starter. 

“I hope you didn’t believe anything,” his father said. “He Tian, right? And the other one?”

Jian Yi was currently choking on a huge pile of pancakes, so He Tian had to answer for him.

“That’s Jian Yi, but he’s not that important. I’m the one who made friends with Guan Shan first.”

“You forced me to cook for you since you were a fire hazard!” Guan Shan corrected him.

“True, but then we fell in love and you became a better person for it,” said He Tian. 

Guan Shan felt his face burning up, half from anger, half from shame, but luckily, his father took it as a joke. 

“You certainly are charming,” he said. “And thank you. From all my heart.”

“Don’t thank him, dad!” Guan Shan complained, face still burning hot. “Are we all just going to ignore that Jian Yi is dying?”

He quickly turned to punch Jian Yi in the back, even though he had just managed to swallow his bite without coughing too much.

“Ouch! What the hell, redhead? Do you want me to die or not? In any case, don’t try to save me again!”

Guan Shan’s mother giggled at their antics. Jian Yi’s plate was filled up again in the blink of an eye, and Guan Shan had no choice but to succumb to the domesticity of having breakfast with his friends and his family. It was crazy how fast they had managed to claw their way back into his life.

Later, when he was on the toilet for a minute, he texted Zheng Xi.

**Mo Guan Shan:** _Please come. They infiltrated my home. My parents love them. I hate this._

Zheng Xi’s answer didn’t come until he was back in the living room, where his father and He Tian were playing a game of chess while Jian Yi helped his mother choose some clothes from a catalogue.

**Zhan Zheng Xi:** _Can’t right now. Promised my sister to help her study for a test. Maybe later. Stay strong._

**Mo Guan Shan:** _Fine, but if they break out the photo albums, you need to text Jian Yi a dick pic as a diversion tactic._

**Zhan Zheng Xi:** _No!_

**Zhan Zheng Xi:** _Maybe abs. I worked hard on them._

**Mo Guan Shan:** _Actually, send me that too._

**Mo Guan Shan:** _Need motivation._

**Zhan Zheng Xi:** _???_

**Mo Guan Shan:** _To work out, not to wank. Asshole._

Zheng Xi just sent him a kiss smiley face and Guan Shan put the phone back in his pockets, rolling his eyes. Today was just one of those days when everyone wanted to get on his nerves.

His mother had noticed that he came back into the room and waved him over.

“I was just telling Jian Yi about your cooking classes. What’s the address for the restaurant again?”

“No!” barked Guan Shan. “Do not tell them! They have nothing better to do and will know where to bother me all day!”

His mother just laughed as if he had made a joke. Jian Yi and He Tian both knew how to suck up to grown-ups, so his mother would never understand how annoying they were. 

“Also, what the hell?” He had noticed something she had circled in the catalogue. It looked like lingerie. “Jian Yi, are you seriously picking out underwear for my mom?” he screeched.

His mother shushed him, checking over her shoulder if his father had heard. 

“Not so loud!” she chided. “He just helped me decide between two pairs. I don’t always want to feel like the housewife, but I lost touch with what’s considered… erotic.”

“I want to die,” Guan Shan said. 

“Your mom still has a great body,” Jian Yi said helpfully. “This will look amazing.”

“I want to kill you and then kill myself,” Guan Shan corrected himself. 

“You’re right, this is nothing for my son to see. Shoo, go away,” his mom said, waving him towards his father and He Tian, both looking at the chess board with concentrated faces. 

Guan Shan considered going back to the bathroom and asking Zheng Xi for the diversion pic, but if he had learned one thing from seeing Jian Yi with his mother, it was that his friends were under no circumstances to be left alone with his parents for even one second.

He joined He Tian and his father at their table. From afar, it had looked like they were absorbed in the game, but coming closer, he realized that they were talking in hushed voices.

“So,” He Tian said casually, moving a piece on the board. “Being in prison and all – you have any experience with other men?”

Maybe it would be better to just go over to the window and jump.

“Sure,” said his father, which made Guan Shan stop in his tracks for a second. “Well, not physically, but I watched a lot.”

On the other hand, a jump from He Tian’s apartment would probably do the job better.

“How so?” asked He Tian.

“Well, they got it on right in the showers. Didn’t really have another choice.”

“Are you against that?”

“Shower orgies?”

“No, gay stuff, I mean.”

“I’m a little old for you, I think.”

“Don’t worry. I’m just asking because my own father is a little… well.”

“Oh. I see. You’re too old to be adopted, right?”

“OKAY!” Guan Shan shouted in a panic. “IT’S SO LATE! WE REALLY NEED TO GO!”

Everyone was looking at him now – Jian Yi and his mom from where they were circling lingerie in a catalogue and He Tian and his father from where they were talking about gay prison sex. Guan Shan just needed to leave. Now. Immediately.

“It’s barely noon,” said his mom. “I’m sure we can-“

“We have plans, actually,” Guan Shan lied. “We’re meeting Zheng Xi at the basketball court. And we’re late for that. Very late. He’s probably already there. Removing his t-shirt because he’s sweating so much.”

Finally, the words registered in Jian Yi’s animal brain and he jumped out of his chair. Guan Shan’s parents looked mostly confused, but they accepted the sudden departure in exchange for promises of visiting again soon. 

Guan Shan would make sure that never happened. 

Once they were out in the van, driving towards an empty basketball court, He Tian gave a long, satisfied sigh.

“Gold star family,” he said, looking genuinely happy. “Don’t even mind that you’re gay.”

“Haven’t told them, so a warning would have been nice,” Guan Shan said through gritted teeth. 

“Now you don’t have to be afraid of it anymore,” said He Tian.

Guan Shan rolled his eyes. “Thanks, my heroic savior. I already knew that. It’s none of your business, so just try to keep your nose out of it for once.”

“Fine,” He Tian shrugged. “At the end of the day, I’m just happy that me and my gay lover…” he held his hand out for Jian Yi in the backseat to hold. “…were invited into such a normal and loving family. Really missed out on that one for our whole lives.”

“You’re both assholes,” was the only thing Guan Shan had to say to that.

This time, it lacked a lot of heat.


	7. Chapter 7

Zheng Xi was waiting at the basketball court when they got there. Guan Shan had managed to leave a voice message when they had stopped on the way over to get some drinks. Since Jian Yi and He Tian were involved, getting drinks proved to be a time-consuming task which took up at least half an hour. Enough time for Zheng Xi to think of an excuse for his sister and walk over here. 

He looked up from his stretches once he heard their loud voices.

“You lied!” Jian Yi screeched as soon as they got out of the car. “He’s not even shirtless!”

“I lied about more than that,” grumbled Guan Shan, but Jian Yi was already running off to pester Zheng Xi.

Guan Shan stayed by the car to search for a shadier parking space. If they left it like that, it would be a miracle for the van to start up again. His mother wouldn’t be happy if he brought the van back a molten lump.

“I spotted some tarp in the backseat. Wanna cover the car with it?” asked He Tian, who must have been reading his thoughts.

“Fishing for considerate-points again, huh?” said Guan Shan, but he gladly accepted the help and together they wrapped the car up with the tarp until it looked like an out-of-place Christmas-present.

“I don’t know when you got the idea that I’m an inconsiderate asshole,” said He Tian.

“Maybe when you fucked off to god-knows-where without a word and left me to think you’re dead for two years,” Guan Shan shot back.

“Oh. Are you still hung up on that?” said He Tian. “I’m just joking,” he added, when he got nothing but a glare for his troubles. “I know you won’t be over that for a while. It’s fine. I’m very patient.”

Guan Shan left him by the side of the car and stalked over to where Zheng Xi was back to his stretches, unbothered by Jian Yi running around him like an excited puppy. 

“Hey,” Guan Shan said. Then he threw his arms around his fake-boyfriend’s neck and pulled him into a kiss that left them both breathless. It was weirdly un-weird, considering their demonstrations of affection towards each other had consisted of mostly innocent pecks on the lips as greetings so far. Good thing they practiced this in the stairway of He Tian’s building.

Zheng Xi pulled back with raised eyebrows. “Okay?” he said.

“Sorry,” Guan Shan whispered. “He Tian was being an asshole.”

“Ah,” said Zheng Xi. “I get it.” He closed the gap between them again, until Jian Yi’s whining got too loud to bear. That and He Tian’s silence sounded like music in Guan Shan’s ears.

When he turned to look, He Tian stood in the middle of the court, clutching the ball so hard that his knuckles shone white in the sun. 

“We have to do this more often,” Guan Shan said.

“You can just say it if you’ve fallen for me,” said Zheng Xi, looking an awful lot like he wanted to grin when Guan Shan’s head shot back around to glare at him.

“To make them jealous!” Guan Shan hissed, then shoved Zheng Xi away. “You’re supposed to be on my side, asshole!”

Zheng Xi jogged past him towards the court, pressing a short kiss to Guan Shan’s temple as he did so. Sickeningly sweet.

“Lose the shirt already!” Guan Shan called after him.

…

Zheng Xi didn’t lose the shirt until three matches in. They had lost all of them against He Tian and Jian Yi – and that was all Guan Shan’s fault. He was the only one tragically out of form.

Jian Yi was running an extra circle around the court just to brag and got yelled at by He Tian for his troubles.

“Don’t spend all your energy!”

He Tian had stripped to his underwear before the game had even started. “Didn’t come dressed for the occasion,” he shrugged when Guan Shan protested. “Those jeans were expensive, and I can’t afford to buy new ones.”

“We’re gonna get arrested,” Guan Shan had said, but no one else thought they would meet another person in this midday heat. 

So that’s how they played. One unfair game after the other. It wasn’t Guan Shan’s fault that he didn’t get hauled off to some mafia boot camp and had invested time in working at his mother’s flower shop and a restaurant and go to cooking classes instead. He was preparing for his future, unlike those other meatheads. 

Jian Yi came jogging back to their half of the court, looking sweaty from the sun, not sweaty from the sport. Still, he tugged at his t-shirt like it was a winter coat. 

“Phew, it really is getting hot,” he said, all naïve eyes and innocent smiles. Then he bent down, caught the shirt on his back and pulled it off in one smooth motion.

Guan Shan wondered if he had practiced that in front of a mirror, like Guan Shan had practiced the ‘Welcome to Honeypot, how may I help you’ line with a nice smile in his room. In any case, it worked. Even Guan Shan, who had never looked at Jian Yi _like that_ had to stop and stare.

Jian Yi had always been lean and slender, and he was still lean and slender, but he looked _sculpted_ now. Like out of marble with his smooth, pale skin. He had grown taller, his arms looked bigger – both of those things should have been clear, but Guan Shan had forgotten to look for them. He had been too absorbed by He Tian’s transformation. 

Jian Yi really had a much better body than Guan Shan’s ficus benjamini. There was no denying that.

He Tian must have noticed Guan Shan’s staring, because a heavy arm suddenly rested on Guan Shan’s shoulders and he was met with a satisfied grin when he turned to look. 

“Are you jealous now?” he asked. 

Guan Shan pushed him away and stalked over to Zheng Xi, who still hadn’t woken up from his stupor. Did he have to do everything himself around here?

Zheng Xi didn’t fight it when Guan Shan pulled his t-shirt up, although he didn’t help either, so it almost became stuck under his arms. 

“Look!” Guan Shan panted, when he finally freed Zheng Xi’s torso from the obstructing fabric. “Look at this!” he repeated, turning Zheng Xi towards He Tian to properly show off his abs. “Do you seriously think I’m jealous of your marble Barbie when I get _this_ on top of me every night?”

He Tian, for once, had nothing clever to say about that. Just like Guan Shan before, he was stunned by the sight of perfect, sculpted abs. As if they had some weird Medusa-like powers.

Finally, He Tian caught himself.

“So… he’s on top?” he asked weakly. 

“On top… or under me… or pressed up against the wall. What’s it to you?” Guan Shan said.

“Fodder for my fantasies,” He Tian returned. 

Guan Shan would have liked to kick him for that but was distracted when Jian Yi suddenly fell to his knees to stare at Zheng Xi’s abs up close. Now Guan Shan couldn’t decide who he wanted to punch first.

“What’s wrong with them?” he finally noticed. Neither Jian Yi nor Zheng Xi had spoken a word, they were just staring at each other with completely dumb expressions on their faces.

He Tian shrugged. “I think they’re just silently coming in their pants right now.”

“Ugh!” said Guan Shan, looking away. 

He Tian could not tear his eyes away so easily. “Can I…” he pondered, taking a step towards Zheng Xi. “Can I touch them?”

“No, you can’t!” Guan Shan bristled, but it was too late. When he turned around, he saw He Tian with his flat hand on Zheng Xi’s abs. He was still in his underwear, and as if that wasn’t weird enough, those other two were still just staring at each other, Jian Yi crouched in the perfect blowjob-position. If someone saw this, they really _would_ get arrested. Guan Shan felt a rage that would have beaten them all, no matter how strong they had become. He found the ball on the ground, picked it up, and kicked it into their little group. It hit Jian Yi right on the head.

“Are you crazy?”

The wailing finally broke the spell. He Tian and Zheng Xi took a quick step away from each other while Jian Yi dramatically rolled over the floor.

“You could have killed me!”

“Your death was due this morning,” Guan Shan yelled, “I’m just righting a wrong.”

“Actually, his death was due two years ago,” said Zheng Xi. 

“All the more reason!” said Guan Shan. 

Jian Yi seemed dead set on making Guan Shan kill him for real. He got up from the floor and pointed an accusing finger towards Guan Shan. “You’re just jealous that we’ve all become hunks! Why don’t you show us your own abs, huh?”

Guan Shan’s face flared up in shame. 

“That’s right!” Jian Yi sneered, “you don’t have any!”

“That’s because I exercised my brains instead of my guns!” said Guan Shan. “And unlike some other losers, I actually graduated high school.”

“Ack!” Jian Yi acted like Guan Shan had stabbed him right in the heart. 

Zheng Xi managed to save the situation with his calm demeanor. “Maybe we should play another game,” he said, picking up the ball. “That’ll calm you down.”

An awful idea, Guan Shan thought, because he would definitely lose. But then He Tian’s hand was back on his shoulders and for the first time, what he said sounded like a good idea.

“Maybe we should play other teams. For old times’ sake.”

Everyone was on board with that, so Guan Shan got in position to block Jian Yi while He Tian gathered up all the removed clothes from the court and threw them under the tree where the rest of their stuff was.

They played three more games. Jian Yi was so distracted by his own teammate’s physique that it was an easy win three times in a row, but afterwards, Guan Shan still felt like dying. He hadn’t moved this much in months. 

While He Tian and Jian Yi went to get water from under the tree, Zheng Xi plopped down next to Guan Shan, who was stretched out on the court again, face towards the sun. For some reason, Zheng Xi looked haunted.

“What’s wrong?” Guan Shan asked when Zheng Xi wouldn’t stop looking at him with his serious face. “Are you okay?”

“Not sure,” said Zheng Xi. “I think I finally understand you.”

“Huh?”

“He Tian,” Zheng Xi failed to clarify.

“I really don’t know what you’re trying to say here.”

“During the game…” said Zheng Xi. “He was so… touchy.”

It took a moment for Guan Shan to really get it. Then he shot up into a sitting position, eyes growing wide.

“No way!” he said. Then, louder: “NO WAY!”

“Shhh!”

“Oh my God!” Guan Shan couldn’t help it. He was laughing. Shrill. “He turned you on!”

Zheng Xi’s flat hand muted him, but Guan Shan couldn’t stop laughing, even when he was pressed to the floor, Zheng Xi’s weight on him. 

“Didn’t…” Guan Shan hiccupped, the words barely making it through Zheng Xi’s finger. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you…” He had to stop himself as another wave of laughter shook him. Zheng Xi looked decidedly unamused.

“Stop this!” Guan Shan finally croaked out. “You idiot! You know this is my kink!”

Zheng Xi looked confused for a moment, then he realized what position they were in – him pressing Guan Shan to the ground with his whole body, like He Tian had tried yesterday. For once, it was Zheng Xi’s face that sported a bright pink.

Guan Shan still had difficulties breathing. Tears were streaming down his face from laughing too hard. When Zheng Xi’s weight was gone, he saw He Tian and Jian Yi standing next to them, both looking down at him as if he’d just revealed his own set of abs of steel.

Guan Shan glanced down to his stomach. His shirt had ridden up, but no abs had mysteriously appeared.

“How…” He Tian broke the silence, looking at Zheng Xi. “How did you do that?”

“Do what?” asked Guan Shan. He wished someone would help him up. He was too weak to do it himself.

“That,” said He Tian, gesturing towards Guan Shan in a wide motion. “Make you _laugh_ like that.” He turned back towards Zheng Xi. “Teach me!” he ordered. 

Zheng Xi just rolled his eyes and stalked away, still annoyed. He Tian quickly jogged after him to pester him with more questions.

Jian Yi was the only one left. Guan Shan noticed that his hand was outstretched, a wide grin on his face.

Guan Shan took the hand and let Jian Yi pull him up onto his feet.

“You know, if you do that more often, you really don’t need any abs at all,” said Jian Yi as they walked back towards the tree.

Guan Shan decided not to trip him for it. 

It was probably just the basketball to the head speaking.


	8. Chapter 8

That evening, they decided to have a picnic on the roof of He Tian’s building. It wasn’t open access, but the lock proofed ineffective against two mafia-trained rule-breakers planning to impress their old flames with romantic scenery. 

“How is this different from looking outside your huge-ass window?” grunted Guan Shan as he walked through the door onto a big terrace and immediately realized just how different it was to look all around the city tinted in sunset shades.

“You can feel the wind in your hair up here,” said He Tian. He closed his eyes in bliss, spreading his arms as if he wanted to embrace the world and his new-found freedom. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Dangerous, mostly,” said Guan Shan. He refused to be impressed. “I have fantasized about coming up here for a specific reason after hearing you talk to my father about gay sex earlier today.”

“He did _what_?” exclaimed Jian Yi. Delighted, not repulsed. 

“I don’t even want to _think_ about what you did with my mother!” Guan Shan snapped at him. “You visited my house _one time_ and forever ruined my family!”

“We are welcome to come back anytime,” He Tian smiled, sitting down on the blanket Zheng Xi had spread on the floor and reaching for a take-away box. 

Guan Shan rolled his eyes and sat down next to Zheng Xi. He didn’t want to talk about this anymore. It was getting closer to night-time, which meant bed-time, which meant nightmares involving his mother in lingerie and his father watching other prisoners go down on each other in the shower. 

“Aren’t you going to eat?” asked Zheng Xi, all concerned boyfriend-like.

“Do you want to see me puke?”

“Don’t be a drama queen. Eat!” said Zheng Xi, too used to Jian Yi’s antics to be impressed. 

Guan Shan took the box Zheng Xi pushed in his direction and kept his grouchy face as he looked at the contents. “We really have to start cooking again,” he said. “We’ll get fat.”

“You’re the only one who can cook and you refuse to,” said Jian Yi. He had already inhaled his food and was creeping closer every time Guan Shan blinked, so Guan Shan made sure to keep his meal out of reach, despite its questionable quality.

“Don’t forget to look at the sunset over your petty fights,” He Tian reminded them. “You wouldn’t want to miss life while you’re squabbling over unimportant things.”

Jian Yi jumped at that, insisting on squabbling over unimportant things with He Tian himself while Guan Shan decided to heed his words. He watched the sun set over the city skyline as he thoughtfully worked through his box of noodles.

It wasn’t unusual for He Tian to fall into serious musings now and again. Guan Shan wasn’t good at interpreting them, but he thought he understood this time. Still – if He Tian thought that a simple sentence was enough to make Guan Shan forgive him and stop his pretend-relationship with Zheng Xi, he was seriously overestimating Guan Shan’s maturity. Guan Shan would be a childish bitch about this for as long as he could stand it and there was nothing He Tian could do about it.

“It’s nice to be back,” He Tian said a while later. The sun had almost set. Only a violet tint reflecting off the buildings in the distance was left of it - and its warmth, molten into the asphalt and concrete and glass of the urban jungle. Just as the four boys had molten into each other, two years of absence stuffed somewhere between them but not strong enough to keep them apart. Guan Shan was leaning against Zheng Xi, who had accepted Jian Yi cuddling against his other side with He Tian at the far end, arm casually sprawled across Jian Yi’s back. 

And even though there were two people between them, Guan Shan could feel the warmth of He Tian’s palm wandering through their connected bodies, seeping out of Zheng Xi’s shy fingers placed at the small of Guan Shan’s back. They were all somehow broken and complicated, but at that moment, there was not a doubt in Guan Shan’s mind that it would all end up alright. Forgiveness and trust were somewhere in the distance, just like the last rays of sunlight painting the city purple. Not quite in reach yet, but a promise that no matter how dark it got, the sun was there and it would rise again.

…

The next morning was a Monday. Never Guan Shan’s favorite time of day or day of week. He wasn’t sure if it was made better or worse by the sight of He Tian in a flowery apron greeting him as he walked through the doors of the Honey Pot. 

“Good morning!” He Tian chirped. “Sleep well?”

“You didn’t force any alcohol on me this time, so it was alright,” Guan Shan grunted in response, shouldering past him to get into the little back room behind the counter, where his own apron hung. 

“You’re no fun when you’re drunk. You just get mean and tired,” he heard He Tian say through the cascade of ivy separating them. 

Guan Shan returned to the shop to find him parading around with a watering can, randomly filling various vases on the shelves. 

“Hey!” Guan Shan barked. “We have a _system_ here! Don’t do anything before I’ve shown you how!”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” said He Tian. He looked over his shoulder and covered his mouth with the tips of his fingers, like a dame from an old movie. “I’m such a clutz! You should come and show me how it’s done, Big Mo.”

“If you don’t take this seriously, I’m firing your ass,” said Guan Shan. He knew that He Tian could read from his tone that he didn’t mean it. Even though it was a Monday morning, he had the nerves to put up with He Tian. So far. It was a good sign. 

He Tian skipped back to his side, presenting the watering can with both his hands.

“Please, Master! I’m your trusty apprentice, willing to learn anything you so generously decide to teach me.”

“I already regret this,” Guan Shan sighed, but he took the can, filled it with water and showed He Tian the list on the wall. “It says here which plants need to be watered on which days. You can’t water them every day, that would kill them. Get it?”

“They can drown. Noted.”

“Before you water them, you have to feel the potting soil. If it’s still damp, no need to water it.”

“Still on the drowning. Got it.” He Tian nodded.

“And do not give them too much! Better too little than too much, understand?”

“Third time drowning warning. It’s a big problem. I understand. I will not give them too little or too much or too often. You can count on me, Master.”

Guan Shan rolled his eyes. “I don’t know if I can do this if you’re gonna be this goofy all day long. Yesterday you were all serious. What happened?”

He Tian paused a second too long before saying, “Nothing.”

“Oh my God!” Guan Shan covered his ears, as if that could take back what he already heard. “Ugh! I’m really gonna puke now! Will you _always_ be like this after having sex? This is so gross! You’re gross! Go away, you’re fired!”

He Tian didn’t listen, he just crossed his arms and gave a bright smile.

“You don’t have to be jealous, you know? It’s no secret that you could have me anytime you so much as blink your eyes at me.”

“Puking!” Guan Shan announced, hiding behind the counter. “I’m seriously puking!” he gagged. 

The sound of someone clearing their throat right in front of the counter had him shoot up again, head bright red when he saw a customer standing there and looking at him expectantly. He hadn’t heard the bell over the door. 

“What can we help you with today, good sir?” asked He Tian. He was naturally charming, so the customer turned to him for help. 

“Do you have any orchids?” asked the man.

“There was no delivery yet,” Guan Shan explained. “They should arrive around midday.”

“I’m looking for a pure white one,” the man continued, still looking at He Tian as if he would magically conjure a white orchid out of his ass. Actually, Guan Shan wouldn’t have been surprised if he did.

“If you return this afternoon, I will make sure to put aside the best looking orchid for you,” He Tian promised with a smile. 

The man nodded, satisfied. “Thank you, young man. I’ll be back,” he said and left without even looking at Guan Shan again. 

“Wow,” said Guan Shan. “I guess you should handle the customers from now on.”

Just as well – he hated being fake-nice to people anyway. No more exercising his tone and friendly face in the mirror. He Tian would function like a customer service hand-puppet and leave Guan Shan to do his work the way he liked it best: Invisible.

“But your scowl and scrunched little eyebrows are what make the Honey Pot so sweet,” said He Tian, shooting him a bright smile. “No one would want to miss out on that.”

“Stop it!”

“Stop what?”

“Flirting, you ass!”

“This is just how I talk,” argued He Tian. “I’m like that with everyone.”

The bell above the door chimed again, just in time for He Tian to prove his outrageous lie. 

“Good morning and welcome to the Honey Pot.” He smiled sweetly at the girl who had entered. She was taller than Guan Shan, and a bit lanky. Her long black hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail. She was pretty, but there was no need for He Tian to gush like he did. It was embarrassing and unprofessional. 

“Oh – can I just say? Your eyes are beautiful. I just noticed them right across the room. And that really says something, since you’re beautiful to begin with.” 

The girl slalomed the pots and vases on the floor. Despite the sweet talk, her face mirrored Guan Shan’s. She ignored He Tian, came to a halt in front of Guan Shan and thumped a heavy brown paper bag onto the counter.

“The yeast you asked for,” she said, voice monotone.

“I _asked for_ some leftovers. What is this? Am I supposed to feed all of China with milk bread?” Guan Shan eyed the paper bag with contempt.

The girl just shrugged her shoulders. “This was left over. You asked for leftovers. Your leftovers now.”

“This yeast is gonna eat everything in my fridge and grow into an all-powerful being!”

“Give some away, then. Maybe the clown you hired likes to bake.”

They both turned to glance at He Tian, who stood to the side, forced smile still on his lips.

“He can’t do anything,” Guan Shan said, looking back at her. “Least of all bake.”

“I believe you,” she said. “Why is he here exactly?”

“We’re doing charity work,” said Guan Shan. “Giving people a job no one else would take. He would starve otherwise.”

“Great. Now you can bake him a load of milk bread that will last him a lifetime and you can spare yourselves the embarrassment of having him greet your customers. You’re welcome.”

She turned around, leaving Guan Shan with a paper bag full of yeast and He Tian frozen in shock. The chiming of the bell signaling her absence finally woke him up.

“I’m shocked!” he said.

Guan Shan rolled his eyes. “Some people are immune to your idiocy. Get used to it.”

“No, I mean… I’m shocked that you made a friend all on your own!”

Guan Shan turned to yell at him, but he didn’t know what to yell.

“It’s great!” He Tian said, beaming. “I like her. You seem to get along fine.”

“Shut up!” yelled Guan Shan, who had finally found something to yell. “Of course I can make friends of my own. I’m not an idiot.”

“How did you meet?”

“Her family owns the bakery next door. And we’re co-workers and classmates.”

“Sounds like you see each other every day and didn’t have much of a choice but to become friends, but I’ll let it slide,” said He Tian. “You’re friends with a girl and you never even tried to use her as a beard. I’m very proud of how in touch you are with yourself.”

“My foot is gonna be in touch with your ass any minute now,” said Guan Shan. His Monday morning nerves for He Tian were finally spent. “Go get the mop in the corner and start working or I swear I’ll fire you for real.”

He Tian was still grinning as he went to get the mop. Guan Shan could guess why. That asshole was enjoying this. 

Now that they were working together, it would be like this all the time. Flirting until Guan Shan’s head exploded, almost unbearable amounts of goofing around, and continuous threats of firing. 

If he was honest with himself, Guan Shan almost looked forward to it.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked it, I'm happy about comments or kudos :) Also, I just made a tumblr, if you want to follow me, it's "rigonelli" and it's pretty much just stuff I laughed about alone in my bed.


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